Unfamiliar Streets (Nehsmay, Seliarus, Lelio, and Tohka))

[Nidassasyae]

The 50 of fall, 510 AV Nidassasyae walked along the street, peering at the smooth round cobblestones under her feet. How did humans get so much stone? How did they bring it in here? It seemed an awful lot of work just to make the the ground more even. She supposed that there was some natural ground even smoother than this, like in the North. Was the ground here hilly? How did they smoothen it out just to put stones on it, and if they had smoothened it out, why bother with stones? The many ideas and implications of cobblestones confused the young Kelvic, and she shook her head to clear it. Humans were silly folk, what more reason to put stones here did they need? Pushing her wild and tangled hair out her face, Nidassasyae continued her walk through the city. After getting out of that job place, she was suddenly reminded of the tons of stone pressing around her, and the sea of people pulling her forwards. She came close to biting people a couple of times, the claustrophobia was starting to give her a knot of fear in her stomach. Remembering what Nehsmay had told her about biting people, she managed to only bare her teeth, causing more than one person to stumble out of the way of the strange and wild girl. She pushed through the crowd, giving a sigh of relief when there seemed to be less people in the area she now stood in. She had no idea why the people didn't walk this way, having no experiance with foot traffic. Nidae had just stepped off a busy street and onto a quieter one. She could only hope Seliarus had followed her, she peered over the crowd but couldn't quite make out faces. And, if she couldn't find the Dhani, how was she supposed to find Nehsmay? The fear of being lost in this strange city made her search even more frantically for Seliarus. The gleam of the midday sun shone off a Syliran Knight's armor, and she gasped. The crepuscular creature covered her eyes, the especially bright flash blinded her. Sinking to her knees, she held her face in her hands, waiting for the pain to pass.

[Seliarus]

Noise. Noise. And even more noise. Can't they be quiet for one cursed minute? His head was starting to ache just like a bad hangover. Everywhere he looked, everywhere he stepped, it got louder. The beating of horseshoes, the yelling of children, the gossip of old women, and the bragging of newly married men. Why was he even able to hear that. He didn't want too. He wanted to crawl away and hide for this all to pass. He was slowly getting dizzy, but the only thing that kept him walking was his will. He knew if he would get lost, it would be over. His slit-like eyes traveled around, finding it harder to focus than before. Look for the Kelvic. his inner voice ordered. And he knew he should. They have lost the Vantha in the crowd already. Speaking of her, the Dhani wondered where Nehsmay might be. He didn't like where this is going one bit. The paper in his hand already lost it's shape. He gave a thought on the job, but thrown it out just moments after. Money can wait.

How hard was it for him to find a girl with a painted face anyways. His eyes gazed violently around. Over, and over again. Before...Wait, what was that. Even he might be a forest creature to a degree, knew that kneeling down wasn't exactly a normal thing to do. Yet, this person in front of him did just that. Wait, person. He seen this garment somewhere. He was sure. Who else would walk around like that in Syliras. With a few swift steps, he would already hoover stand in front of the Kelvic, and, if she wouldn't do anything, he'd try to poke her forehead. In a whisper, that even he almost overheard, he spoke. "Nidae...Ssstand up. Calm down, you're makin' a ssscsssene." He knew that if anyone would see them now, they might think he did something, and as he heard the merchants talking about this place, he'd be thrown out before he could explain himself. "You alright?" He added as well, trying to not sound as selfish as he was. He looked down at her, and tried to offer a hand for her to stand up.

[Nidassasyae]

The light that shone through the gaps between her fingers suddenly disappeared. Was there someone standing in front of her? She peeked through her fingers, giving a half smile when she recognized Seliarus' face. She crinkled her nose and swiped at the Dhani's hand as he poked her in the forehead. Trying to bat the annoying hand away, Nidassasyae stared at Seliarus' booted feet. Her eyes were teary, and several teardrops ran down her face. This sunlight was just so cursed bright! The leopard gazed at the outstretched hand before her. To get up, or not to get up? She pouted at the man, remembering that he had told her that she was making a scene. Who was he to scold her? She wasn't crying! She was no cub, to panic at the walls closing in around her. At the thought of the walls, the Kelvic shuddered. She couldn't see them, her eyes being closed, but she could feel them around her, pressing in. With a grimace, Nidassasyae grabbed onto Seliarus' hand, pulling herself up. Well, anyone could panic at the walls, even adults, she persuaded herself, pressing closer to Seliarus. All the people, the sunlight, this wretched city. She hissed at the walls, then held on tight to Seliarus' arm. "Ya, I'm alright, it's just so bright. Where's Nehsmay?" she asked in a small voice, determined not to show her fear.

[Seliarus]

The Dhani silently observed her struggle. He could see well enough the tears that appeared dripping down her cheeks. He could relate very well to that feeling. He felt like screaming, and bashing his head somewhere. But he remained passive. He wont show anything to anyone. He was a Dhani, after all. Cold, deadly murderer. With no self control. He should be able to handle this assault of noise, and the mass amount of people. Why couldn't he, then. Was he really that weak.

His hand got slapped away, but he didn't mind that. His lips stayed one simple line, as he kept looking down. As hoped, she grabbed his hand, and stood up. Her reply on her question was..calm. He could see that she was hiding her real feelings for this. But weren't they all? it was too much to handle, simple as that.

He looked at her once more, then around the city itself. It looked like the people will simply keep coming. There wasn't even an end in this giant snake made by men. That made him uneasy. "I...Wasss with you all the time, remember?" He replied on her answer, trying not to sound offending, but it wasn't easy. He had no idea on what to do next. He found someone he knew, but they still need to find the Vantha. They should of never have lost sight of each other in the first place. The city was...Huge. And every corner looked the same. Every person in here looked the same. The Dhani shifted his weight on his left leg, trying to shake the feeling off. She shouldn't think like this. He isn't like that. Stop panicking, he said to himself. "We ssshould, if you don't have anything against it..." He started, forcing himself to speak in a calm and emotionless voice. "..Look at the gatesss. Maybe sssshe ssstayed there. Or, do you have a better idea?" He finished. He had no other idea than to simply start searching there, where he lost something. Besides, he felt better walking than being in one place. It was eating away his sanity. "Nidae...I don't like it here." He finally said, sighing deeply. "Let'sss find her."

[Lelio]

WoooooooooOOOOOOOoooYEOUTCH!

Splat went Lelio, falling flat on the floor from the top of a nearby house, barely missing Nida and her snaky-friend. The cold embrace of the stony alley wasn't the most welcoming floor he had ever encountered, but it did knock some sense in him. Lying face on the ground, he didn't move for quite a while.

Owwwwww... he lowly mumbled, proving his wasn't quite dead yet from the feat.

His arms twitched a little and he finally got to push himself from the rocky pavement, slowly getting seated cross-legged in what seemed to be a painful manner. He tilted his head left and right as if checking if it was still firmly linked to his body, and put his hands on the bottom of his back to stretch. Only then did he notice the couple that stood not five feet away from him. And even hurt like he was, a beaming smile still stayed on his face. Perhaps he had been knocked stupid?

Hello peopl- yeoutch! he tried to say before giving off a little foxy yelp.

These roofs are slippery you wouldn't imagine! he added with a little chuckle, still massaging his back to ward the pain away.

Whether the young lad didn't notice Nida crying or whether he didn't care, the result was the same. He didn't seem to be bothered one bit by what had just transpired, and was still radiating with joyfulness.

[Nidassasyae]

Nidassasyae nodded, sticking close to Seliarus. "The sooner we're out of here, the better." With a final glare at the stones around her, she started to pull him towards the gate. Her ears twitched and she leapt back, trying to pull the Dhani man with her. Nidae heard the yell, and a humanoid form flew through the air towards her. She bent her knees in a crouch, baring her teeth and the fallen stranger, and snarled. The leopard straightened, realizing that the person seemed to pose no threat. In fact, he hardly looked older than her! Curious now, the girl detached herself from Seliarus' arm, and walked over to the prone figure of the boy. Still squinting, she squatted down near him, she reached out to shake him, to see if he was alright. Surprised by the boy's sudden exclamation, she fell back from her heels, landing on her rump on the cobblestones. Nidae winced, sticking her tongue out at the rocks. Another odd thing about humans, why did they line their streets with such sharp rocks? "Slippery?" asked Nidae cautiously, meeting the boy's deep eyes with her own half closed icy blue ones.

[Seliarus]

The Dhani simply stood there, as someone just happened to fall down a roof. His reflexes gave him the needed motion to look at the one who fell down, but that was about it. He needed a couple of moments to realize what just happened. Was that a kid...Face planting on the ground and dying there for no apparent reason? What's wrong with this town. Seliarus was kind of lost, until he seen the apparently dead boy speak. Now, either was this one extremely lucky, or extremely stupid. Or a mixture of both. Who in their right mind goes jumping down a house nowadays. He shook his head, as he seen him sat down, quite obvious he was in pain.

Just a few moments after, he seen his Kelvic friend go closer to take a look at him. Now, he didn't say she should be careful, then he had that feeling that he wouldn't be dangerous at first glance. But he shouldn't underestimate anyone, so he simply stayed on his guard, as his snake eyes looked at the child. Or , little man, whatever would sound better in his head.

He glanced over at Nidae again, just to find her on the ground as well. He looked away...for two seconds. He sighed lightly. He had a feeling they wont be going anywhere anytime soon. He gazed up in the sky. To the only thing that remained almost the same. Where are you, Nehsmay? He asked himself, before giving his attention back to the two Kelvics. Well, he knew that one of them was. What the flying boy was, however, was a mystery. He shifted a step back, and just remained standing there. Thinking about what should he do now. And worst of all... This damned city wont stay silent. He felt everything starting to turn around him, and he shifted his weight back on his right foot. It stopped for a moment, and the Dhani finally got a moment to catch his breath.

[Nehsmay]

Nehsmay looked frantically everywhere trying to recall where in Morwen's name she was. She had just left Shade at those stables and now she was trying to make her way towards the gates hoping to meet her friends somewhere on the way. Everything was so loud, stuffy and hot... the air was barely breathable unlike the clear, natural air she loved back in Avanthal. She missed the frozen scent of the icy wind, the smoke coming from the numerous fires where vantha gathered to tell stories, the wilderness... Here it smelled like rock, the dust was heavy in the air and kept getting in her eyes, the people were too many walking everywhere, bumping into you, yelling and chattering non stop. She wanted to meet her friends and go to an inn or even outside to get away from it all. The Vantha looked left and right... where were Nidae and Seliarus? Where had she last seen them? Were was she? A middle aged woman walked past her and she asked politely: "Excuse me could you ...?" "Not now, girl, I'm busy." The woman brushed her aside and left her standing like a fool. What had just happened? Suddenly she noticed a something on a roof? Was that a person? As fast as it appeared , the shadow slipped from the roof and fell somewhere in the crowd. She quickly bolted towards that place...

[Lelio]

Lelio's big eyes blinked in wonder at Nida, the boy apparently couldn't see what she didn't understand in his previous words. His head tilted sideway in curious cat-like manner and he blinked once again, his face not changing the slightest in the expressions he wore, that big smile of his still stuck on his face like heavy glue. A little trickle of blood went down from his forefront, but he didn't seem to notice.

... Yea, slippery! Like, you know, went it's easy to slip on it? Not sleep, mind you. Slip. Like, woosh! he exclaimed, making a motion with his right hand.

The strangest part in his words was that there wasn't a single drop of sarcasm or mockery in his voice - he was merely and purely explaining. His smart green eyes were locked on his fellow Kelvic's gaze, and his stare was devoid of anything but pure childish curiosity about the world around him. He tilted his head again, and his sight went on Seliarus who stood behind Nida for a short moment before coming back onto the girl before him. The young lad also realized he was bleeding and touched his forefront with his fingers before bringing them before his eyes.

Oh, jolly holy me! Blood! he said with a laugh as he put his fingers in his mouth. He shortly went on trying to clean the blood away from his face using his wet fingers - the result looked way more awful than if he had just let it stop by itself.

Meh. Gotta find a river to clean that off. River, river... Awwwww there are none in town! he exclaimed disappointedly, his face still smeared with his crimson life fluid.

[Nidassasyae]

"Oh," nodded Nidassasyae, trying to look as if she understood. The leopard knew the word 'slippery', just like anyone who had treked across the ice would. It was the fact that the strange boy had been up on the rooftops... and all he seemed to have noticed was that they proved slippery! The Kelvic sniffed, the aroma of fresh blood wafting by her nose. She licked her lips, but quickly reminded herself that this boy was not a foe... yet. The intoxicating smell made her think of a nice raw piece of deer. She gave a small amused smile, trying not to laugh at the boy's antics. Was he trying to clean himself? He wasn't doing a very good job, the blood was still an angry red splotch on his face. "No, humans are too silly to build rivers in their towns. They like rocks though." Nidassasyae gestured to the cobblestones around her. She stood, and offered the stranger a hand up. Regardless if he took it, she would slink back to Seliarus, the flying boy's distraction had wore off. The weight of the walls were pressing in about her, and the sounds of the people did nothing to soothe her frazzled nerves.